Alterations in mitochondrial structure and function in response to environmental temperature changes in Apostichopus japonicus.

Global temperatures have risen as a result of climate change, and the resulting warmer seawater will exert physiological stresses on many aquatic animals, including Apostichopus japonicus. It has been suggested that the sensitivity of aquatic poikilothermal animals to climate change is closely related to mitochondrial function. Therefore, understanding the interaction between elevated temperature and mitochondrial functioning is key to characterizing organisms' responses to heat stress. However, little is known about the mitochondrial response to heat stress in A. japonicus. In this work, we investigated the morphological and functional changes of A. japonicus mitochondria under three representative temperatures, control temperature (18 °C), aestivation temperature (25 °C) and heat stress temperature (32 °C) temperatures using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observation of mitochondrial morphology combined with proteomics and metabolomics techniques. The results showed that the mitochondrial morphology of A. japonicus was altered, with decreases in the number of mitochondrial cristae at 25 °C and mitochondrial lysis, fracture, and vacuolization at 32 °C. Proteomic and metabolomic analyses revealed 103 differentially expressed proteins and 161 differential metabolites at 25 °C. At 32 °C, the levels of 214 proteins and 172 metabolites were significantly altered. These proteins and metabolites were involved in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, substance transport, membrane potential homeostasis, anti-stress processes, mitochondrial autophagy, and apoptosis. Furthermore, a hypothetical network of proteins and metabolites in A. japonicus mitochondria in response to temperature changes was constructed based on proteomic and metabolomic data. These results suggest that the dynamic regulation of mitochondrial energy metabolism, resistance to oxidative stress, autophagy, apoptosis, and mitochondrial morphology in A. japonicus may play important roles in the response to elevated temperatures. In summary, this study describes the response of A. japonicus mitochondria to temperature changes from the perspectives of morphology, proteins, and metabolites, which provided a better understanding the mechanisms of mitochondrial regulation under environment stress in marine echinoderms.

Whole Landscape of the Origin and Evolution of Gassing in Supercapacitors at a High Voltage.

Although supercapacitors with acetonitrile-based electrolytes (AN-based SCs) have realized high-voltage (3.0 V) applications by manufacturers, gas generation at high voltages is a critical issue. Also, the exact origins and evolution mechanisms of gas generation during SC aging at 3.0 V still lack a whole landscape. In this work, floating tests under realistic working conditions are conducted by 22450-type cylindrical cells with an AN-based commercial electrolyte. Comprehensive insights into the origins and evolution mechanisms of gas species at 2.7 and 3.0 V are acquired, which involves multiple side reactions related to the electrode, current collector, and electrolyte. Both experimental evidence and density functional theory calculations demonstrate that the primary reasons for gas generation are residual water and oxygen-containing functional groups, especially hydroxyl and carboxyl. More importantly, additional types of gas (such as CO2, NH3, and alkenes) can only be detected at a higher voltage of 3.0 V rather than 2.7 V after failure, suggesting that these gas species can be regarded as the failure signatures at 3.0 V. This breakthrough analysis will provide fundamental guidance for failure evaluation and designing AN-based SCs with extended lifetime at 3.0 V.

Principal Component Analysis and t-Distributed Stochastic Neighbor Embedding Analysis in the Study of Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm Entangled and Non-Entangled Mixing Operators.

In this paper, we employ PCA and t-SNE analyses to gain deeper insights into the behavior of entangled and non-entangled mixing operators within the Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm (QAOA) at various depths. We utilize a dataset containing optimized parameters generated for max-cut problems with cyclic and complete configurations. This dataset encompasses the resulting RZ, RX, and RY parameters for QAOA models at different depths (1L, 2L, and 3L) with or without an entanglement stage within the mixing operator. Our findings reveal distinct behaviors when processing the different parameters with PCA and t-SNE. Specifically, most of the entangled QAOA models demonstrate an enhanced capacity to preserve information in the mapping, along with a greater level of correlated information detectable by PCA and t-SNE. Analyzing the overall mapping results, a clear differentiation emerges between entangled and non-entangled models. This distinction is quantified numerically through explained variance in PCA and Kullback-Leibler divergence (post-optimization) in t-SNE. These disparities are also visually evident in the mapping data produced by both methods, with certain entangled QAOA models displaying clustering effects in both visualization techniques.

Investigating the Mechanism of Low-Salinity Environmental Adaptation in Sepia esculenta Larvae through Transcriptome Profiling.

Sepia esculenta is an economically important mollusk distributed in the coastal waters of China. Juveniles are more susceptible to stimulation by the external environment than mature individuals. The ocean salinity fluctuates due to environmental changes. However, there is a lack of research on the salinity adaptations of S. esculenta. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the differential expression of genes in S. esculenta larvae after stimulation by low salinity. RNA samples were sequenced and 1039 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Then, enrichment analysis was performed using the Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) databases. Finally, a protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed, and the functions of key genes in S. esculenta larvae after low-salinity stimulation were explored. We suggest that low salinity leads to an excess proliferation of cells in S. esculenta larvae that, in turn, affects normal physiological activities. The results of this study can aid in the artificial incubation of S. esculenta and reduce the mortality of larvae.

Quantum Information Entropy for Another Class of New Proposed Hyperbolic Potentials.

In this work, we investigate the Shannon entropy of four recently proposed hyperbolic potentials through studying position and momentum entropies. Our analysis reveals that the wave functions of the single-well potentials U0,3 exhibit greater localization compared to the double-well potentials U1,2. This difference in localization arises from the depths of the single- and double-well potentials. Specifically, we observe that the position entropy density shows higher localization for the single-well potentials, while their momentum probability density becomes more delocalized. Conversely, the double-well potentials demonstrate the opposite behavior, with position entropy density being less localized and momentum probability density showing increased localization. Notably, our study also involves examining the Bialynicki-Birula and Mycielski (BBM) inequality, where we find that the Shannon entropies still satisfy this inequality for varying depths u¯. An intriguing observation is that the sum of position and momentum entropies increases with the variable u¯ for potentials U1,2,3, while for U0, the sum decreases with u¯. Additionally, the sum of the cases U0 and U3 almost remains constant within the relative value 0.01 as u¯ increases. Our study provides valuable insights into the Shannon entropy behavior for these hyperbolic potentials, shedding light on their localization characteristics and their relation to the potential depths. Finally, we extend our analysis to the Fisher entropy F¯x and find that it increases with the depth u¯ of the potential wells but F¯p decreases with the depth.

Quantum Information Entropy for a Hyperbolic Double Well Potential in the Fractional Schrödinger Equation.

In this study, we investigate the position and momentum Shannon entropy, denoted as Sx and Sp, respectively, in the context of the fractional Schrödinger equation (FSE) for a hyperbolic double well potential (HDWP). We explore various values of the fractional derivative represented by k in our analysis. Our findings reveal intriguing behavior concerning the localization properties of the position entropy density, ρs(x), and the momentum entropy density, ρs(p), for low-lying states. Specifically, as the fractional derivative k decreases, ρs(x) becomes more localized, whereas ρs(p) becomes more delocalized. Moreover, we observe that as the derivative k decreases, the position entropy Sx decreases, while the momentum entropy Sp increases. In particular, the sum of these entropies consistently increases with decreasing fractional derivative k. It is noteworthy that, despite the increase in position Shannon entropy Sx and the decrease in momentum Shannon entropy Sp with an increase in the depth u of the HDWP, the Beckner-Bialynicki-Birula-Mycielski (BBM) inequality relation remains satisfied. Furthermore, we examine the Fisher entropy and its dependence on the depth u of the HDWP and the fractional derivative k. Our results indicate that the Fisher entropy increases as the depth u of the HDWP is increased and the fractional derivative k is decreased.

In Situ Gelation of a 1,3-Dioxolane Dual-Permeable Porous Tandem Framework with Excellent Interfacial Stability to Power Long-Cycling Solid-State Lithium Metal Batteries.

Ceramic Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 (LATP) with high ionic conductivity and stability in ambient atmosphere is considered to be potent as a solid-state electrolyte of solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs), but its huge interfacial impedance with electrodes and the unwanted Ti4+-mediated reduction reaction caused by the lithium (Li) metal anode greatly limit its application in LMBs. Herein, a composite polymer electrolyte (CPET) was integrated by in situ gelation of dual-permeable 1, 3-dioxolane (DOL) in the tandem framework composed of the commercial cellulose membrane TF4030 and a porous three-dimensional (3D) skeleton-structured LATP. The in situ gelled DOL anchored in the tandem framework ensured nice interfacial contact between the as-prepared CPET and electrodes. The introduction of the porous 3D LATP endowed CPET the increased lithium-ion migration number (tLi+) of 0.70, a wide electrochemical stability window (ESW) of 4.86 V, and a high ionic conductivity of 1.16 × 10-4 S cm-1 at room temperature (RT). Meanwhile, the side reaction of the LATP/Li metal was adequately restrained by inserting TF4030 between the porous LATP and Li anode. Profiting from the superb interfacial stability and the enhanced ionic transport capacity of CPET, Li/Li batteries based on the optimal CPET (CPET2) cycled over 2000 h at 20∼30 °C smoothly. Moreover, solid-state LiFePO4 (LFP)/Li with CPET2 exhibited excellent electrochemical performance with a capacity retention ratio of 72.2% after 400 cycles at 0.5C. This work offers an integrated strategy to guide the fabrication of a highly conductive solid electrolyte and a stable interface design for high-performance SSLMBs.

Transcriptome profiling explores the immune defence mechanism of triploid Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) blood against Vibrio alginolyticus based on protein interaction networks.

Triploid oysters have provided the oyster industry with many benefits, such as fast growth rates, meat quality improvement, and increased oyster production and economic benefits, since the first report on triploid oysters was published. The development of polyploid technology has remarkably increased the output of triploid oysters to meet the increasing demand of consumers for Crassostrea gigas in the past decades. At present, research on triploid oyster has mainly focused on breeding and growth, but studies on the immunity of triploid oysters are limited. According to recent reports, Vibrio alginolyticus is a highly virulent strain that can cause disease and death in shellfish, shrimp, as well as serious economic losses. V. alginolyticus may be a reason why oysters die during summer. Therefore, using V. alginolyticus to explore the resistance and immune defense mechanisms of triploid oysters against pathogens presents practical significance. Transcriptome analysis of gene expression was performed in triploid C. gigas at 12 and 48 h after infection with V. alginolyticus, and the respective 2257 and 191 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. The results of GO and KEGG enrichment analyses showed that multiple significantly enriched GO terms and KEGG signaling pathways are associated with immunity. A protein-protein interaction network was constructed to investigate the interaction relationship of immune-related genes. Finally, we verified the expression situation of 16 key genes using quantitative RT-PCR. This study is the first to use the PPI network in exploring the immune defense mechanism of triploid C. gigas blood to fill the gap in the immune mechanism of triploid oysters and other mollusks, and provide valuable reference for future triploid farming and pathogen prevention and control.

Transcriptome analysis preliminary reveals the immune response mechanism of golden cuttlefish (Sepia esculenta) larvae exposed to Cd.

As a well-known marine metal element, Cd can significantly affect bivalve mollusk life processes such as growth and development. However, the effects of Cd on the molecular mechanisms of the economically important cephalopod species Sepia esculenta remain unclear. In this study, S. esculenta larval immunity exposed to Cd is explored based on RNA-Seq. The analyses of GO, KEGG, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of 1,471 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) reveal that multiple immune processes are affected by exposure such as inflammatory reaction and cell adhesion. Comprehensive analyses of KEGG signaling pathways and the PPI network are first used to explore Cd-exposed S. esculenta larval immunity, revealing the presence of 16 immune-related key and hub genes involved in exposure response. Results of gene and pathway functional analyses increase our understanding of Cd-exposed S. esculenta larval immunity and improve our overall understanding of mollusk immune functions.

Improved impurity determination of pure organic substances by differential scanning calorimetry with a dynamic method.

Differential scanning calorimetry can be used to measure the impurity contents of pure organic substances on the principle of freezing-point depression. Impurity determination by differential scanning calorimetry with a dynamic method, which has the advantages of speediness and convenience, remains to be explored. Here, a series of acetanilide and dibenzothiophene samples with various purities was prepared through zone melting, and the samples were then analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A modified dynamic method, including encapsulating the analyte in a volatile pan through cold welding, remelting the analyte with a low heating rate, calculating the melted fraction considering the area of the tailing under the heat-flow curve, and reducing the error from solid-solution formation, is proposed. Encapsulating with a volatile pan using a proper torque gave an accurate result. Remelting gave a lower impurity content and a more narrow and sooth peak of heat-flow compared with the first melting. The impurity-content results calculated by the modified method were usually higher than those calculated by the ASTM standard method. For acetanilide and dibenzothiophene with impurity contents of less than 0.30%, the modified dynamic method showed good accuracy. The proposed method is applicable to determination of reference materials of organic substances with high purity owing to its accuracy and convenience.

Weighted Gene Co-Expression Network Analysis Based on Stimulation by Lipopolysaccharides and Polyinosinic:polycytidylic Acid Provides a Core Set of Genes for Understanding Hemolymph Immune Response Mechanisms of Amphioctopus fangsiao.

The primary influencer of aquaculture quality in Amphioctopus fangsiao is pathogen infection. Both lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (Poly I:C) are recognized by the pattern recognition receptor (PRR) within immune cells, a system that frequently serves to emulate pathogen invasion. Hemolymph, which functions as a transport mechanism for immune cells, offers vital transcriptome information when A. fangsiao is exposed to pathogens, thereby contributing to our comprehension of the species' immune biological mechanisms. In this study, we conducted analyses of transcript profiles under the influence of LPS and Poly I:C within a 24 h period. Concurrently, we developed a Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) to identify key modules and genes. Further, we carried out Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses to investigate the primary modular functions. Co-expression network analyses unveiled a series of immune response processes following pathogen stress, identifying several key modules and hub genes, including PKMYT1 and NAMPT. The invaluable genetic resources provided by our results aid our understanding of the immune response in A. fangsiao hemolymph and will further our exploration of the molecular mechanisms of pathogen infection in mollusks.

Quantum Information Entropy of Hyperbolic Potentials in Fractional Schrödinger Equation.

In this work we have studied the Shannon information entropy for two hyperbolic single-well potentials in the fractional Schrödinger equation (the fractional derivative number (0

Exploration of immune response mechanisms in cadmium and copper co-exposed juvenile golden cuttlefish (Sepia esculenta) based on transcriptome profiling.

Sepia esculenta is a popular economic cephalopod with high yield, delicious meat, and rich nutrition. With the rapid development of heavy industry and medical industry, a large amount of waste has been released into the ocean recklessly in recent years, inducing a significant increase in the content of heavy metals, especially cadmium (Cd) and copper (Cu), in the ocean. This phenomenon significantly affects the growth and development of S. esculenta, causing a serious blow to its artificial breeding. In this study, transcriptome analysis is used to initially explore immune response mechanisms of Cd and Cu co-exposed juvenile S. esculenta. The results show that 1,088 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) are identified. And DEGs functional enrichment analysis results suggests that co-exposure may promote inflammatory and innate immune responses in juvenile S. esculenta. Fifteen key genes that might regulate the immunity of S. esculenta are identified using protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and KEGG enrichment analyses, of which the three genes with the highest number of interactions or involve in more KEGG pathways are identified as hub genes that might significantly affect the immune response processes. Comprehensive analysis of PPI network and KEGG signaling pathway is used for the first time to explore co-exposed S. esculenta juvenile immune response processes. Our results preliminarily reveal immune response mechanisms of cephalopods exposed to heavy metals and provide a valuable resource for further understanding of mollusk immunity.

Effect of acute Cu exposure on immune response mechanisms of golden cuttlefish (Sepia esculenta).

Sepia esculenta is a common economic cephalopod that has received extensive attention due to the tender meat, rich protein content and certain medicinal value thereof. Over the past decade, multiple industries have discharged waste into the ocean in large quantities, thereby significantly increasing the concentration of heavy metals in the ocean. Copper (Cu) is a common heavy metal in the ocean. The increase of Cu content will affect numerous biological processes such as immunity and metabolism of marine organisms. High concentrations of Cu may inhibit S. esculenta growth, development, swimming, and other processes, which would significantly affect its culture. In this research, transcriptome analysis is used to initially explore Cu-exposed S. esculenta larval immune response mechanisms. And compared to control group with normally growing larvae, 2056 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) are identified in experimental group with Cu-exposed larvae. The results of DEGs functional enrichment analyses including GO and KEGG indicate that Cu exposure might promote inflammatory and innate immune responses in cuttlefish larvae. Then, 10 key genes that might regulate larval immunity are identified using a comprehensive analysis that combines protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and KEGG functional enrichment analyses, of which three genes with the highest number of protein interactions or involve in more KEGG signaling pathways are identified as hub genes that might significantly affect larval immune response processes. Comprehensive analysis of PPI network and KEGG signaling pathway are used for the first time to explore Cu-exposed S. esculenta larval immune response mechanisms. Our results preliminarily reveal immune response mechanisms of cephalopods exposed to heavy metals and provide valuable resources for further understanding mollusk immunity.

Entanglement Property of Tripartite GHZ State in Different Accelerating Observer Frames.

According to the single-mode approximation applied to two different mo des, each associated with different uniformly accelerating reference frames, we present analytical expression of the Minkowski states for both the ground and first excited states. Applying such an approximation, we study the entanglement property of Bell and Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) states formed by such states. The corresponding entanglement properties are described by studying negativity and von Neumann entropy. The degree of entanglement will be degraded when the acceleration parameters increase. We find that the greater the number of particles in the entangled system, the more stable the system that is studied by the von Neumann entropy. The present results will be reduced to those in the case of the uniformly accelerating reference frame.

Alpha-Beta Hybrid Quantum Associative Memory Using Hamming Distance.

This work presents a quantum associative memory (Alpha-Beta HQAM) that uses the Hamming distance for pattern recovery. The proposal combines the Alpha-Beta associative memory, which reduces the dimensionality of patterns, with a quantum subroutine to calculate the Hamming distance in the recovery phase. Furthermore, patterns are initially stored in the memory as a quantum superposition in order to take advantage of its properties. Experiments testing the memory's viability and performance were implemented using IBM's Qiskit library.

Quantum Information Entropies on Hyperbolic Single Potential Wells.

In this work, we study the quantum information entropies for two different types of hyperbolic single potential wells. We first study the behaviors of the moving particle subject to two different hyperbolic potential wells through focusing on their wave functions. The shapes of these hyperbolic potentials are similar, but we notice that their momentum entropy densities change along with the width of each potential and the magnitude of position entropy density decreases when the momentum entropy magnitude increases. On the other hand, we illustrate the behaviors of their position and momentum entropy densities. Finally, we show the variation of position and momentum entropies Sx and Sp with the change of the potential well depth u and verify that their sum still satisfies the BBM inequality relation.

Incentive Mechanisms for Carbon Emission Abatement Considering Consumers' Low-Carbon Awareness under Cap-and-Trade Regulation.

In the era of sustainable development, reducing carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality are gradually becoming a consensus for our society. This study explores firms' incentive mechanisms for carbon emission abatement in a two-echelon supply chain under cap-and-trade regulation, where consumers exhibit low-carbon awareness. To boost the manufacturer's motivation for abatement, the retailer can provide four incentive strategies, i.e., price-only (PO), cost-sharing (CS), revenue-sharing (RS), and both (cost and revenue) sharing (BS). The equilibrium decisions under the four incentive strategies are obtained by establishing and solving game models. A two-part tariff contract is also proposed to coordinate the low-carbon supply chain. Finally, through comparisons and analyses, we find that: (1) Consumers' high low-carbon awareness can boost the manufacturer's incentive for carbon emission abatement (CEA), thus increasing supply chain members' profits. (2) It is more effective for the retailer to share its revenue to incentivize the manufacturer for abatement than to bear the investment cost of CEA. Thus, Strategy RS is better than Strategy CS and equivalent to Strategy BS. (3) The manufacturer and retailer have consistent incentive strategy preference under cap-and-trade regulation. Both firms prefer the incentive strategy with a higher cooperation level. (4) The incentive strategy with a higher cooperation level can also bring higher eco-social welfare under certain conditions.

Transcriptome profiling based on larvae at different time points after hatching provides a core set of gene resource for understanding the immune response mechanisms of the egg-protecting behavior against Vibrio anguillarum infection in Amphioctopus fangsiao.

Mollusks have recently received increasing attention because of their unique immune systems. Mollusks such as Amphioctopus fangsiao are economically important cephalopods, and the effects of their egg-protecting behavior on the larval immune response are unclear. Meanwhile, little research has been done on the resistance response of cephalopod larvae infected with pathogenic bacteria such as Vibrio anguillarum. In this study, V. anguillarum was used to infect the primary hatching A. fangsiao larvae under different egg-protecting behaviors for 24 h, and a total of 7156 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified at four time points after hatching based on transcriptome analysis. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses showed that multiple immune-related GO terms and KEGG signaling pathways were enriched. Protein-protein interaction networks (PPI networks) were used to search functional relationships between immune-related DEGs. Finally, 20 hub genes related to multiple gene functions or involved in multiple signaling pathways were identified, and their accuracy was verified using quantitative RT-PCR. PPI networks were first used to study the effects A. fangsiao larvae after infection with V. anguillarum under different egg-protecting behaviors. The results provide significant genetic resources for exploring invertebrate larval immune processes. The data lays a foundation for further study the immune response mechanisms for invertebrates after infection.

Impacts of Supply Chain Competition on Firms' Carbon Emission Reduction and Social Welfare under Cap-and-Trade Regulation.

In the carbon neutrality era, firms are facing increasingly intense environmental pressure and market competition. This paper considers two competitive supply chains with consumers' low-carbon preference under the cap-and-trade regulation, each of which consists of one manufacturer and one retailer. Considering competition or integration in vertical and horizontal directions, four different supply chain structures are modeled. By applying a game-theoretical approach, the equilibrium pricing, carbon emission reduction (CER) level, profit, and social welfare are obtained. Through comparison and analysis, the economic and environmental impacts of supply chain competition are explored. The results show that (1) the carbon quota acts as a kind of financial subsidy and brings direct economic profit to the supply chain, which cannot be used to incentivize the firm to invest in CER technology; (2) the HCVI strategy can bring the highest CER level, the most market demand, and social welfare among the four strategies; (3) for the enterprise and the government, it is recommended to take measures and enact policies to strengthen the vertical integration and horizontal competition between supply chains. Our study can guide firms on how to cope with increasingly fierce industry competition and environmental pressure by adjusting their operational decisions and supply chain structure.